Smoothies – Why not sneak in a vegetable or two?
Posted on November 21, 2012 by in dairy, desserts, rsg
Smoothies are my emergency plan when the children come home from school, ravenous and mom had no time to cook or buy something yummee! Smoothies are healthy, filling and cool the children down quickly, especially on those very hot summer days. Whether you are dairy intolerant, sugar or wheat intolerant, there is a smoothie recipe for you!
My daughter is a bit tricky when it comes to smoothies, she “hates bits” in her drink, so for her the ratio of fruit to yogurt must be almost 10 % fruit 90 % yogurt. My son on the other hand loves smoothies as long as they are sweet enough! I receive countless emails and sms’ from desperate moms, asking me how to get their children to eat more fruit and vegetables. The answer is easy……………..SMOOTHIES. Well it is not the only way to deal with children’s adversity towards all things nutritious, but it is a start. Heck, you can even freeze those smoothies and serve them “ice-cream” for breakfast, lunch and supper!
The possibilities are endless with smoothies, you can literally use any fruit and with us being slap-bang in the middle of summer the bounty of fruit is so amazing. Berries in all shapes and sizes, peaches, apricots, pineapples, pawpaws, kiwi, watermelon, melons and so much more. Bulk up your smoothies with nuts like almonds, cashews and my favorite macadamias or use wheatgerm or bran! The choice is yours whether you would like a milky smoothie or just fruit. Even choosing Milk can be interesting….. ordinary milk, yogurt, rice milk, soy or for that real tropical taste, use coconut milk.
Berry and Beetroot Smoothie
So now we have the fruit covered, but “how on earth do I get my child the eat vegetables, especially the ones that are good for him?” Today I felt a bit like “playing saviour” for these poor mommies! How can I help them? My idea was that if my strawberry smoothie has a very authentic strawberry taste, I could sneak in a portion of raw beetroot and no one will notice? Or a handful of spinach to my kiwi smoothie and some little orange tomatoes to my pineapple smoothie. At least that was my theory. I told now one in the house and just made 3 smoothies……kiwi….. strawberry ……. and pineapple, each with their added “vitamin boost!”
Kiwi and Spinach Smoothie
The verdict?
They loved it no one even noticed a difference in the taste. Theyy were shocked when I told them they just had a spinach and kiwi smoothie, a beetroot and strawberry smoothie and a pineapple and tomato smoothie. So mommies, here lies your answer, be sneaky, be inventive and be VERY careful that they don’t catch you!
Pineapple, Peach and Tomato Smoothie
Whenever I have fruit, like bananas that are slightly bruised( my children do not touch those) or peaches, I cut it up in chunks and freeze it in ziplock bags. This way you will always have fruit available for smoothies even in the winter months when you are limited for choice. The frozen fruit also makes your smoothie thick and luscious, almost like a frozen yogurt!
It is very difficult to write down exact quantities when making smoothies. Here is a few guidelines that will help.
Chose your fruit and vegetables
Fruit
Peaches, plums, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, melons, grapes, pineapples, bananas and kiwis
Vegetables to add
Fresh beetroot, carrots, baby tomatoes, spinach and even sprouts
Add bulk
wheatgerm, nuts, oats, coconut, dried fruit
Dairy or non-dairy
milk, yogurt, Greek yogurt, goat’s milk, rice milk, almond milk, coconut milk or even fruit juice will work.
So to give you an idea, here is what I did for my Berry and Beetroot Smoothie
Berry and Beetroot Smoothie
Ingredients
5 large strawberries – washed and hulled
½ banana
125 ml Fairview Full Fat Yogurt
20 ml runny honey
1 small raw beetroot – peeled
Method
Place all the ingredients in a blender or smoothie maker and blitz until smooth and ready to drink!
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